These Days
These Days, by Noxy (equanox) - AKA 'Noxy Productions' - is a gritty, urban and darkly emotional serial drama set in and around two fictitious Leicestershire towns: the urban Newben and the more widely featured suburban town of Middlehampton. Season 1 ran from January 14, 2013 - July 19, 2013. Season 2 began on September 4, 2013 and is currently still active. The show has been critically acclaimed from the outset, and has won 26 WRIXAS to date, more than any other project in the forum's history and 12 more than its nearest rival. On 12th May 2013, it was named 'Best Soap' for the fifth consecutive occasion. As of 12th May 2013, there have been 134 episodes of the project. Formation 'These Days' was first concieved as an idea in the autumn of 2001. Creator Noxy (real name Chris Marshall) had found two recent ITV soaps to be an influence on him. 'The second generation of Crossroads had begun earlier in the year, and a new soap, Night & Day, had just begun', he explains. 'They weren't very popular, and they certainly weren't without their faults, but I found them very engaging. Crossroads had been well cast and the understated but no less dramatic plots made great drama. Sarah Jane Harvey the imposter (played by Joanne Farrell) to this day is still one of my favourite ever soap exits! Night & Day though was a different kettle of fish altogether. The writing was pretty bad and the concept - teenager Jane Harper goes missing - was obviously limited. But it's more the feel of Night & Day that really got under my skin; it was dark, it was emotional and the casting was outstanding. I'd never seen anything like this before and it was incredibly interesting, if very hit-and-miss. I found myself very inspired by the pace and intricacy of Crossroads, and the darkness and intimacy of Night & Day, and found myself wanting to write a soap which converged these two styles into one. As a result, 'These Days' was born.' In terms of naming the show, Marshall set out to find a name for it, making sure there was no other soap or TV programme in the world of significant standing which would make naming the soap difficult. 'It was a long time ago but I probably went through a few titles for the show but, as is often the case in these things, as soon as I came up with the title 'These Days', I instinctively knew that's what this show was going to be called. It had a great ring to it!' Marshall began writing 'These Days' towards the end of 2001. He had written 9 episodes before launching it, but then suddenly stopped. 'When I looked back over the content and pacing of these 9 episodes, I didn't think they were good enough. So I redrafted them and started again. I felt deep down that 'These Days' had too much potential to get it wrong. I had to get it right. I owed it to the show.' So the show began again a few weeks later in 2002. It ran for 12 months before ending. In 2005, a second series began, set three years after the original, and this continued in sporadic installments all the way up to 2009, when the show stalled at around Episode 200. 'I stopped writing the show because I felt I had made a mess of it', he concedes. It was going nowhere and I had just run out of steam with it. It had lost all sense of direction and so I decided to abandon it. I don't regret doing that in any way - it was the right thing to do at the time.' Revival In August 2011, Noxy (Chris Marshall) joined a creative writing website called 'Writers Express', and soon become an administrator. When the forum's founder decided to leave, Noxy asked if he could take over as Founding Admin, and was given permission to do so. In 2013, Noxy launched a revamped version of 'These Days' from scratch. 'Apart from a few tweaks here and there, this second incarnation of the show's first series was largely faithful to the original until about Episode 40', he explains. At that point, I could see that a lot of the original first series wouldn't be strong enough to stand up in 2013, and I had begun to come up with new ideas and new directions to take various characters and stories in. So from that point on, only a small but significant amount of original material was used; the majority of it was totally new.' Premise 'These Days' is set across two fictional Leicestershire towns - the urbane Newben, and the suburban and more wideley used Middlehampton. They are in the vicinity of Leicester but neither is a fictional form of that city, as Leicester itself is occasionally mentioned in the series as a seperate but nearby location. There are several distinctive landmarks in the show which are instantly familiar to fans. These include the following: *Doyle's - a local restaurant run by Liz Doyle *Lee's shop - a newsagents run by Lee Rogers *The Blue Royale (later Hotel Republic) - a chain hotel *The Moonshine Inn - a pub run by James Warren *Linford Park - a more recent location; a public park thought to border Middlehampton and Newben *The garage - run by mechanics Jack Mason and Steph Donnelly Other locations featured include Newben District Hospital; a cafe called The Hut on Castle Bridge (an area which links the two towns by road); and the modelling agency, which is now defunct. Season 1: Cast Season 1 consisted of 84 episodes. As such, cast will be listed as being in it until and including Episode 84, if they were still a member of the cast when the show finished, unless otherwise stated. The following list is not exhaustive; it comprises the most significant characters to appear in Season 1: *'Lisa Hopkins' (Episode 1 - 84) Adoptive mother of two, Lisa is part of a mangement team that runs a modelling agency (herself a former model), alongside colleagues Phil Tucker '''and '''Adrian Manning. The modelling agency shuts down halfway through the first series when Phil absconds with the agency's assets. This also marks the end of both Phil and Adrian's time on the show. Lisa later becomes the 'day' manager at The Moonshine Inn - the night manager being her arch rival (and former agency employee) Anita Johnson. *'Glen Wright' (Episode 1 - 84) Impulsive husband of Lisa, Glen is a lawyer at an unnamed and largely unseen legal firm. Glen and Lisa share a stormy marriage and seperate and later reunite on several occasions. *'Rosy Lyons' (Episode 1 - 84) A kindly and sensitive young nurse, she was in a relationship with newsagent Lee Rogers '''until it broke down when he cheated on her. These developments happened before the show began. Rosy is suspicious of Lee in the early episodes, though he regrets cheating on her and still holds a torch for her. The tentative and fragile romance between Lee and Rosy is one of the major narratives of the first season, and into the second. Rosy later begins a relationship with businessmen '''Ben Warren, unaware he is the man who left her friend and colleague Keeley Thompson 'for dead only months earlier. Keeley is the first character to die in These Days, and although she was only a minor character, the aftermath of her death and subsequent return to the show of her killer was a symbolic plot device throughout the first season, and into the second. *'Danielle Harvey (Episode 1 - 84) A shy and vulnerable teenager, adopted by Glen and Lisa two years prior to the series beginning. Danielle has a close relationship with Liam Hardacre, Glen and Lisa's adopted son, which becomes sexual. Danielle ends up falling pregnant with his baby, and when Glen reacts badly to this, she runs away, leaving the family distraught. Liam later has an epiphany as to her whereabouts, and is proven right when she turns out to be hiding out at her old care home in Leicester. She is staying there with her old friend Holly Wainwright, who is 17 at the time, whilst Danielle is 15. Danielle later returns home, but Holly also becomes a part of the family's lives when she turns 18 shortly after. *'Liam Hardacre' (Episode 1 - 84) A passionate, caring but occasionally hot-headed teenager, he and Danielle began a sexual relationship, which quickly stalled. However, she became pregnant with his baby, and is four months pregnant by the end of Season 1. *'Keeley Thompson' (Episode 1 - 13) A dopey nurse, friend and colleage of Rosy, she lives with her and housemate Lindsay Adams (who moves to Leeds in Episode 10). Keeley dies in a hit-and-run, which is the cliffhanger to Episode 12 (though she actually dies in Episode 13). The assailant turns out to be businessman Ben Warren, who later turns out to be a lover of Rosy Lyons in a twist of dramatic irony. Lindsay attends the funeral in Episode 15, which is her final onscreen appearance to date. *'Lee Rogers (Episode 1-84)' A ladies man who runs a newsagents in Middlehampton, Lee's one true love is Rosy Lyons, and the pair entertain an on/off friendship througout the first series, which occasionally strays into one-off sexual encounters. However, a combination of Lee's emotional immaturity, Rosy's insecurity about him cheating on her again and most of all, her complex relationship with Ben Warren, constantly prevent Lee and Rosy from having a proper sexual relationship again with each other. Lee's friend Chandra Patel is passively jealous of Lee's feelings for Rosy, as she loves him but he does not feel the same about her. *'Anita Johnson' (Episode 1 - 32; 48 - 84) An archetypal soap bitch, Anita is the number one adversary of Lisa Hopkins throughout the first series. Her brother Mark Johnson appears briefly before he leaves in Episode 7. Initially, Anita is a thorn in the side of Lisa and Glen's marriage, as she pursues Glen in a devious and manipulative manner. However, feeling she has pushed her luck too far, she 'disappears' for a time (she does not appear between Episodes 33 - 47), before re-emerging as a night manager at The Moonshine Inn, a pub which is introduced into the show in Episode 47. Lisa later leaves Glen and begins to fall for publican James Warren. However, so does Anita, prompting a new love triangle in which Anita and Lisa compete for the same man. However, things are further complicated when Anita reveals she is pregnant, as is Lisa. However, in an attempt to cut Anita out of the picture, Lisa lies to James and tells him he is the father of her baby. In fact, Glen is the father, a secret Lisa hides for the remainder of Series 1. *'Vicky Tyler' (Episode 2 - 26) A troubled Scouser, Vicky's fling with Mark Johnson '''ends badly, prompting her to go off the rails and end up in a coma after a drunken car crash. '''Lee Rogers '''takes pity on her and the two become friends with benefits. However, it later transpires that the reason for Vicky's unpredicatability was because she was the victim of sexual abuse as a child at the hands of her father - a subject which split her family. However, Vicky's sister '''Frankie Tyler later turns up to reveal that their mother has finally accepted Vicky's accusastions, and the their father is dead. As a result, Vicky accepts Frankie's offer to return to Liverpool, which happens in Episode 26. *'Steven Cowell' (Episode 2 - 84) Handsome but grumpy, Steven is the deputy manager of the Blue Royale ''hotel for the majority of the series. He develops a romantic but stormy relationship with domestic abuse victim and hotel manager '''Ricki Wells'. Ricki is infamous at the hotel for her ballbreaking style of management, however she gradually shows him a more vulnerable side, as she begins to realise he is serious about her. However, Steven and Ricki's abusive husband Alistair Wells '''eventually clash. This leads to the two men tumbling into a river after a fight, during which Alistair dies. Ricki is initially angry about this, however she soon begins to feel like abusive Alistair is her past while loving Steven is her future. However, their relationship is further complicated by the arrival of beautiful receptionist '''Hannah Cartwright, who it transpires was his high school sweetheart. This makes Ricki insecure, and her insecurity is further enhanced when she becomes pregant with his baby. Worried that she is not maternal enough, and that Hannah will eventually come between her and Steven, Ricki secretly plots to leave, having secured a position as a manager at a Sydney hotel. She has an abortion and abandons Steven. As a result, Steven takes over as manager at the Blue Royale, and he and Hannah get closer. *'Liz Doyle (Episode 3 - 84)' Liz is a restrauteur and runs the Doyle's restaurant in Middlehampton. She is initally a recurring character and is quite steely in her early days. However, due to her poularity with fans, Liz becomes a regular character and also becomes softer and more humorous as the series progresses, developing a maternal personality, with a penchant for waifs and strays! Liz becomes a mother figure to troubled teenager Holly Wainwright, who she later employs as a waitress to replace Chandra Patel, who leaves to become a chambermaid at the Blue Royale ''hotel. *'Rachel Hornby''' (Episode 3 - 84) A college dropout, curious waitress Rachel is something of a lost soul, who quickly becomes involved in the principals of animal rights activist Sarah Reuben. She later joins Sarah on various animal rights marches, and even calls in sick for work to join her on a disastorus protest in Kent. However, on the day of the protest, Rachel and Sarah share a lesbian kiss - even though Rachel is dating mechanic Jack Mason '''back in Middlehampton - before the pair attend the protest. However, Sarah is murdered by '''Sasha Sheridan, an animal rights extremist who leads the aptly-named group The Animals. Devasated by this, Rachel is determined to get justice for Sarah and prove Sasha killed her. This leads to an explosive confrontation between Rachel, Sasha and Sasha's accomplice Corrine 'Spider' Webb. Sasha and Spider die as a result, with Racehl left injured. She returns to Middlehampton soon after, however her boss Liz learns that Rachel wasn't really sick at all, and in fact took time off work to go after Sasha. Subsequently, Rachel is sacked by Liz. Rachel's relationship with Jack also falls into trouble as a result of her admission that she kissed Sarah before she died, and she can't be sure where that would have ultimately lead. Rachel later gets a job as the shop assistant alongside Lee Rogers. Rachel moves in with Rosy Lyons '''and '''Ben Warren, and begins a dark sexual affair with him. However, Ben later arouses the suspicion of Lee and Rachel due to a number of recent deaths which all link back to him, and Lee and Rachel join forces to try and prove as much. Eventually, Rachel stumbles upon shocking evidence which proves Ben is crazed - however due to an unfortunate twist of fate, he catches her in the act, and rapes her as 'punishment.' As he works out what to do with her, Ben and Rachel engage in a violent confrontation at their flat, in which she stabs him in the leg. She then runs off, with Ben giving chase behinf her. In a blind panic, Rachel rushes down a flight of concrete steps, but accidentally trips, causing her to tumble down the stairs. In one of the show's most iconic scenes, she eventually lands head-first at the bottom of the stairs, as a shuddering Ben shakes with fear as blood rushes out from Rachel's head. This is the moment of Rachel's death, which is the cliffhanger to Season 1. *'Chandra Patel' (Episode 3 -84) A friend of Lee Rogers, Chandra is described as dippy, reckless, bluntly spoken but charming, and a loser in love! Chandra has several jobs in the first series, including as a waitress at Doyle's restaurant, but she eventually settles into a role as a chambermaid at the Blue Royale ''hotel in Newben, where she forms a strong friendship with receptionist '''Hannah Cartwright'. *'Jack Mason' (Episode 6 - 84) A gruffly handsome mechanic who owns and runs the local garage in Middlehampton. A friend to Glen Wright,' Steven Cowell '''and' Lee Rogers', Jack is in a relationship with '''Rachel Hornby '''in the first half of the series. However, there is an instant but unspoken attraction between him and mechanic '''Steph Donnelly', who joins his garage as an employee early on in the series. Steph and Jack - affectionately known as 'Stack' by fans - eventually get together as a couple towards the end of the first series. *'Steph Donnelly' (Episode 10 - 84) Feisty but caring, tomboy mechanic Steph finds herself falling for Neil Pearson, an ex-boyfriend of Kelly McIntyre, who is a childhood friend of Steph's younger sister Carrie Donnelly. However, both Neil and Kelly later betray Steph and Carrie when they marry and elope to Sydney, Australia. Steph also falls out with long-time friend Rosy Lyons '''when she chooses to stand by boyfriend '''Ben Warren, who is linked to the death of Steph and Carrie's grandmother Rosemary Donnelly. Following Steph's break up with Neil, and Jack's less recent break-up with Rachel Hornby, Jack and Steph finally begin a romantic relationship with each other. *'Ben Warren' (Episode 13; 45 - 84) Businessman Ben Warren is one of the show's most iconic characters, and its first major villain. Ben first appears as an unidentified drunk driver, who runs over nurse Keeley Thompson '''as she enjoys a night out with '''Rosy Lyons '''and '''Steph Donnelly. He jumps out of the car to check on Keeley, but when he spots an appalled Steph and Rosy heading over to the scene, he is spooked, and jumps back in the car and drives off. Keeley dies shortly after, and this is the last we see of Ben until he comes across Rosy on a shopping trip, both unaware of who the other is. The two develop an instant spark, and soon begin dating. However, it is not long before there is trouble. Ben soon realises from Rosy's conversations that she was a friend of Keeley's, whom he left for dead only months earlier. Rosy is being pressured at work by her friend Steph's nan Rosemary to mercy kill her, leaving Rosy exasperated. Ben subsequently visits Rosemary in hospital and aggressively warns her to back off, which leads her to go into cardiac arrest and die from the shock. Rosy is later furious to learn of Ben's hospital visit, but he claims he was gentle with Rosemary and did not mean to trigger her heart attack. And as she was in the final stages of a terminal illness, it is impossible to know whether or not Rosemary's death was triggered by Ben or by natural causes relating to her terminal illness. As such, Rosy forgives him. A new barmaid, Tania Osbourne, also comes along at around the same time - but it turns out she is an old flame of Ben's who is determined to make Rosy see his true colours. However, it later transpires that beneath her hard shell, Tania is in fact highly troubled, which Ben exploits. In a suicide attempt, Rosy persuade Tania not to jump into a river. Ben then does the opposite and cruelly taunts her - leading to Tania jumping into the river and drowning. In the final episode of the first season, Episode 84, Ben finds Rachel Hornby sifting through his belongings in search of evidence against him. After several ugly altercations, Ben gives chases, prompting Rachel to fall down a flight of concrete stairs and die as she lands head-first at the bottom, leaving Ben badly shaken. *'Carrie Donnelly (Episode 16 - 84)' Naive and immature but sweet-natured younger sister of Steph Donnelly, Carrie's childhood friend Kelly McIntyre returns to her life, and Carrie admits to Kelly she has always been in love with her. To her surprise, Kelly reciprocates, and the two enjoy a lesbian romance for a while, until that is complicated by the emergence of Kelly's still boyfriend, Neil Pearson! Kelly struggles to choose between them, and things are further complicated when Steph and Neil being dating. However in the end, Kelly and Neil reunite. marry and elope, leaving both Steph and Carrie devastated. *'Kelly Pearon McIntyre' (Episode 28 - 75) Carrie's best childhood friend, she begins a lesbian relationship with her while still dating boyfriend Neil Pearson. Kelly ends up pregnant with Neil's baby, but later suffers a miscarriage. However, this brings Neil (who is dating Steph Donnelly) and Carrie (who is dating Kelly) closer together, resulting in them admitting their true feelings for each other. As a result, they decide to marry and leave Middlehampton, to go and live with Neil's family, who have just moved to Sydney, Australia. *'Holly Wainwright' (Episode 40 - 84) Troubled and troublesome, Holly emerges as a former care home friend of Danielle Harvey when Danielle goes to hide out at the care home, as she ran away from home at the time. When Holly turns 18, she is forced to leave the care home but has nowhere to go, and has no desire to return to her native Sheffield. So she turns up on Danielle's doorstep looking for somewhere to stay. Glen Wright '''takes pity on Holly and decides to let her stay. However, the instant spark between Holly and Glen turns out to be a sexual one, and the two embark on a controversial but secretive sexual affair. However, Holly later falls pregnant, with Glen being the father. During this time, Holly forms a pseudo mother/daughter relationship with restrauteur '''Liz Doyle, with whom she lives with intermittently when she is struggling with Glen. Holly and Glen's relationship remains secret until the end of Season 1, and into Season 2. *'Elliot Hardacre' (Episode 80 - 84) Fresh from juvenile detention, gay Elliot turns up to make amends with younger brother Liam. Initially, things are rocky between the two, but they eventually patch things up. *'Noah Donnelly' (Episode 82) Gay Noah - middle sibling and brother to Steph and Carrie - makes a cameo appearance in Episode 82 as part of a storyline about Carrie's 18th birthday. Noah becomes a regular character in Season 2. Season 2: Cast Season 2 begins at Episode 85. The following list is not exhaustive; it comprises the most significant characters to appear in Season 2: *'Lisa Hopkins' (Episode 1 - ) At the beginning of Season 2, Lisa is pregnant with Glen's baby, however she is pretending the father is boyfriend James, in order to fend off arch-rival Anita Johnson, who is also in love with James. However, Anita eventually rumbles Lisa's secret, and Lisa is forced to admit to James that her unborn baby's father is in fact not him, but Glen. As a result, James dumps Lisa and she moves in with best friend Lee Rogers '''(and his housemate and friend '''Chandra Patel) for a time. James later learns that Anita is carrying his baby, and the two become an item. The birth of James and Anita's baby marks a turning point in Anita's relationship with Lisa, as Lisa is present when Anita goes into labour, and finds she has to support Anita through it. This ultimately leads to Anita and Lisa finally burying the hatchet. James and Anita's baby is born on Bonfire Night 2013, promping them to name the baby girl Bonnie '''as a result. Lisa later finds herself disgusted by Glen when the truth about his relationship with '''Holly Wainwright '''emerges. After a time, Lisa becomes romantically involved with newcomer '''Nat Wykin. Although they get off to a rocky start, she proves her commitment to both Nat and his family due to a family crisis that devastes them all. *'Glen Wright' (Episode 1 - ) Glen divides his family when the truth about his relationship with troubled teen Holly Wainwright '''finally emerges - as does the fact that he is the father of her unborn baby. However, his adopted daughter '''Danielle Harvey begins to accept it, whereas adopted son Liam Hardacre is slower to adjust. However, all of them are more distracted by the arrival and subsequent trouble caused by Spike Cooper, an old care home acquaintence of both Holly and Danielle. *'Rosy Lyons' (Episode 1 - 106) The death of Rachel Hornby, and its connection to her boyfriend Ben Warren, finally begin to leave Rosy doubting his innocence, which subsequently results in him kdnapping her and taking her on a nightmare journey where he confesses everything. However, Lee Rogers is on to this, and has roped friend Chandra Patel in to help him stop Ben before it's too late. Ben and Rosy find themselves involved in a horrifying car crash, which sees them roll down an embankment, though neither appears to be badly hurt. As Lee and Chandra catch up with them, Ben holds them at gunpoint, where Lee tries his best to talk sense into Ben. Ben tells Rosy he loves her, before a shot is heard but not seen. Rosy screams out, but again, what's actually happened is not seen. However, this becomes clear in the next episode - 101 0 Ben has shot himself dead. For a time, Rosy is too traumatised to speak to anyone about her ordeal, prompting Lee to ring one of Rosy's half-sisters, Libby Taylor, and get her to come down from Manchester to try to help Rosy. Aware of his womanising reputation, Libby is initially not keen on Lee, however this changes when she sees how worried he is about Rosy. As hoped, Rosy begins to open up to Libby, who suggests Rosy come and stay with her and her other half-sisters Grace and Chloe, until she is stronger. Rosy accepts this offer, devastating Lee. Rosy tells Lee she doesn't know if, or when, she will be back, and she leaves with Libby in Episode 106.